The Grand Empress Dowager’s expression instantly turned grim, and Sumalagu, who was keeping Yiqing company as she played, also lifted her head.
Yiqing fixed her gaze directly on the palace maid. Her Imperial Mother has gone into premature labor? A sense of foreboding crept into her heart. For women in ancient times, giving birth was already a matter of dancing on the edge of death, let alone delivering prematurely.
“Just now, when Her Majesty was taking a walk in the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, a young eunuch who knew no sense of propriety bumped into her…” the palace maid continued, “And now… now the labor has started.”
News of the Empress’s childbirth was supposed to be sent to both the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility and the Palace of Heavenly Purity. The senior palace maids and head matrons in the Palace of Earthly Tranquility were all attending to the Empress, each performing their respective duties, with countless matters falling under their charge. The one sent to report to the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility was a second-rank maid, who did not usually serve in close attendance upon the Empress.
Supported by her attendants, the Grand Empress Dowager rose to her feet and issued instructions rapidly, “I shall go and see for myself. Sumalagu, you stay here and look after Yiqing. When Aruna wakes up later, tell her there is no need for her to come over.”
According to the Empress’s calculations, even if the Grand Empress Dowager did not go personally to oversee matters, everything in the Palace of Earthly Tranquility would still proceed without chaos. Yet the Grand Empress Dowager felt uneasy and still intended to go there herself.
Not long ago, Xuanye had spoken with her, saying that if this child were a son born of the official spouse, he intended to follow the rites and customs of the Han people and name him Crown Prince. At present, Wu Sangui, Geng Jingzhong and others were causing unrest, making it a critical time to win the support of the Han Chinese. Adhering to Han rites and customs at this moment would make it easier to gain their backing.
Furthermore, this move could also serve to curtail the power of the Council of Princes and High Officials, whose members still wielded far too much influence over state affairs.
Sumalagu acknowledged the order. Yiqing opened her mouth, wanting to go see her Imperial Mother too, but closed it again as soon as she remembered that she still had the form of a small child.
The Ancestress would never allow her to come along, and even if she did, the old lady would have to divide her attention to look after her. It was better not to add to the commotion. She could only hope that her Imperial Mother would give birth safely, with both mother and child coming through unharmed.
When the Grand Empress Dowager arrived at the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, she found that Kangxi was already waiting in the Eastern Side Hall.
“Ah—Ugh—”
Cries of the Empress enduring the pain of labor echoed from the main hall, alongside the loud exhortations of the midwives urging her not to waste her strength on screaming.
The young eunuch who had collided with Empress Heseri had already been taken to the Bureau of Punishment. As soon as the Grand Empress Dowager entered, she saw Kangxi seated on a chair, his head slightly bowed so that his expression was impossible to discern.
“Your Majesty.”
Hearing her voice, Kangxi stood up, invited the Grand Empress Dowager to take the seat of honor, and then bowed to pay his respects.
“The Empress is blessed by Heaven and is sure to bring the child safely into the world,” the Grand Empress Dowager said soothingly, noticing the faint traces of anxiety on her grandson’s face. “Besides, this is not the Empress’s first childbirth—she will fare better than women giving birth for the first time.”
Kangxi tried to force a wry smile in response to his grandmother’s comforting words, but found himself utterly unable to smile. He and his beloved wife had been married for seven or eight years; when she was first made Empress, he had not yet taken direct control of the government. Now, his first wife lay inside the chamber in labor, and this premature birth had even been caused by someone else’s carelessness—how could he possibly not be consumed with worry?
The Empress was now eight months pregnant, and there was a folk saying that children born at seven months could survive while those born at eight months often did not. This only deepened Kangxi’s distress. At this moment, he prayed fervently that the best outcome would be for both mother and child to remain safe, but if things went awry, he only wished for the Empress to come through alive. As for the child… there would always be other chances.
As grandmother and grandson waited in the side hall, news of the Empress’s premature labor had spread throughout the imperial harem. Yet no one dared to come forward, for everyone had heard that the early delivery had been triggered by a collision with a young eunuch. The Emperor was surely in a foul mood, and to show up uninvited now would be nothing short of courting disaster.
The palace staff moving back and forth did their utmost to make themselves inconspicuous, avoiding any step into the side hall unless absolutely necessary.
Concubine Nala held Baocing in her arms, her gaze fixed in the direction of the Palace of Earthly Tranquility.
“Eliang,” Baocing had grown very attached to Concubine Nala over these past few months. He held up a small wooden tiger to show her, saying, “Look… Tiger.”
Concubine Nala pulled her thoughts back to the present and smiled at the child in her arms, “Yes, that’s a fine tiger.”
Her feelings were tangled and complex. In terms of status, she could never compare to the Empress, and her family background was equally far inferior. Up until now, Baocing was the only prince in the imperial household. If the Empress gave birth to a son this time, Baocing’s position as the eldest son born of a consort of lower rank would become distinctly awkward.
Moreover, with only a year or two separating the two boys, they would inevitably be drawn into comparisons as they grew older.
She lowered her eyes slightly to look at Baocing in her embrace. This was the child she had risked her life to bear, and whom she had fought to keep in the palace even at the risk of falling out of the Emperor’s favor. No matter what happened, she would do everything in her power to protect him.
Your Majesty the Empress… I only hope that this child will be a daughter. That would make Baocing’s situation far more secure.
In stark contrast to Concubine Nala’s conflicting emotions, Concubine Magiya was in high spirits as she played with her second daughter, Princess Yertan.
“Sister…” Yertan looked up at her mother, repeating the word she had just learned, “Want… sister…”
Concubine Magiya gave a helpless laugh and turned to Nurse Lin beside her, saying with amusement, “Just look at this child—anyone who didn’t know better would think she was raised alongside the Eldest Princess in the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility. The moment she wakes up, all she asks for is her sister, and she never seems to spare a thought for her own mother.”
A hint of playful jealousy crept into her tone as she finished speaking.
Yertan could not understand what her mother was saying, and merely blinked her large, dark eyes—bright as grapes—as she stared up at Concubine Magiya, until the woman could no longer keep a stern expression.
“Yertan, be good,” Concubine Magiya said softly, soothing her daughter. “We can’t go see your sister for the next few days. We’ll have to wait a while before we can visit her again.”
If she brought her child to the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility while the Empress was in labor, and word of this reached the Emperor’s ears, the consequences would be unthinkable. Concubine Magiya could only do her best to calm her daughter and distract her from thoughts of her sister for the time being.
Xiyan covered her mouth to suppress a laugh, nudged her companion Liuzhi gently with her elbow, and blinked, her lips curving into a smile.
Liuzhi responded with a knowing look.
Concubine Magiya noticed their exchange and raised her head to glare at the two senior maids, “What are the two of you grinning about behind my back? What’s going through your minds?”
“We were only thinking,” Xiyan said cheerfully, “that the Princess bears such a striking resemblance to you, Mistress. Back when we were still in the princely manor, you were exactly the same way—always pestering the nurses to take you to visit your elder sister.”
The remark seemed to stir old memories, and Concubine Magiya let out a soft laugh. She had an elder sister, who was now married and had her own family. When her sister had still lived in her maiden home, Concubine Magiya had always followed her around, clinging to her side. Seen in this light, Yertan’s behavior was just like her own—she truly was her mother’s daughter.
As night fell, the Empress still had not given birth. Kangxi was eventually persuaded by the Grand Empress Dowager to return to the Palace of Heavenly Purity, for he was required to hold court the next morning.
Even though he had gone back to his quarters, Kangxi found it impossible to sleep. He changed into his night robes and lay in bed, yet every few moments he would call out to Liang Jiugong, asking whether there was any news from the Palace of Earthly Tranquility.
Thankfully, messengers were being sent back and forth constantly between the two palaces, so Liang Jiugong was almost always able to give him updates.
By the time Kangxi set off for court the following morning, the Empress still had not delivered the child. When the audience finally came to an end and Kangxi, his mind still preoccupied, returned to his chambers, he received a report from Liang Jiugong.
“Your Majesty, Her Majesty the Empress has given birth to a prince! However…”
Kangxi’s brow furrowed sharply. “However, what?”
“Her Majesty… is suffering from postpartum hemorrhage.”